Romano Brothers AND Company Sells 7,120 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Romano Brothers AND Company lowered its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 22.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,040 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 7,120 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,959,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 7,656 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $4,470,000. Kaizen Financial Strategies acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at approximately $329,000. Finally, Fulcrum Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 11.7% during the first quarter. Fulcrum Capital LLC now owns 2,010 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Baird R W upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Zelman & Associates began coverage on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $201.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $177.06.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.9%

WSM traded down $1.44 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $160.10. 1,524,201 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,017,396. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.57. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $125.33 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The stock's 50-day moving average is $155.84 and its 200 day moving average is $178.09.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. Williams-Sonoma's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th were issued a $0.66 dividend. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.90%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total transaction of $4,973,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,018,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $168,826,041.72. The trade was a 2.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 36,312 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.79, for a total value of $6,020,166.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,690,666.52. The trade was a 43.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,892,473. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Williams-Sonoma

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.